II-A. Why are There So Many Web Sites?

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1. Somebody has an idea that they think could make some money (about 10% of all sites)

  1. An on-line book and CD store - www.amazon.com
  2. A totally new business concept - www.priceline.com

2. Somebody wants to extend an existing market (about 5% of all sites)

  1. Barnes & Nobel bookstores wanted an additional outlet for their merchandise - www.barnesandnobel.com
  2. L.L. Bean wanted to expand their market beyond just catalogs and their ME outlet store - www.llbean.com

3. Somebody just wants to advertise (about 5% of all sites)

  1. Nabisco Corporation has a very elaborate web site - www.nabiscoworld.com
  2. But here's an example of a much simpler one - www.sdx.com

4. Somebody wants to get paid to help you find things on the web (about 15% of all sites)

  1. There are general purpose search engines - Google and Yahoo
  2. There are special purpose search engines - Travelocity and AnyWho
  3. There are REALLY specialized search engines - FlightAware and Glue Advice

5. Somebody wants to create a community (about 15% of all sites)

  1. There are sites on which you can store and distribute your photos - Flickr.com and Pbase.com
  2. There are sites on which you can upload and distribute your home videos - YouTube and Google Video
  3. There are sites on which you can make and talk to friends - MySpace and SpinChat

6. Somebody wants you to know what they think about stuff (Bloggers) (about 10% of all sites)

Some examples are:
  1. Windows Tips and Tricks (Vic Laurie)
  2. Google Sightseeing
  3. Daily Kos (Liberal Political Blog)
  4. Andrew Sullivan (Conservative Political Blog)

7. Somebody has a hobby or interest, wants to espouse a cause or just wants a presence on the Internet (at least 50% of all sites)

  1. There are sites focusing on the needs of all kinds of pets - Green Iguana - the Ultimate Owners' Manual
  2. Someone with a lot of frequent flyer miles and a penchant for collecting has created The Air Sickness Bag Museum
  3. Using Google Fight, we can find which of two search terms occurs more often
  4. You can learn what convicted murderers in Texas had as their last meal
  5. Some sites can even read your mind - The Flash Mind Reader

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